Best student credit card?

[MileHigh96]

My daughter just recently turned 18 and she's had her part-time job for over a year now.  We started her early with a checking and savings account and a debit card to teach her how to be financially responsible (she has more money in savings than I do lol).  My DW added her as an AU on her Kohl's charge account about 6 months ago or so.  She has been amazingly responsible with everything.

So we think she's ready for the next step in building her credit so that when she's ready to move out after she graduates that she will be much farther ahead than either I or DW was when we were her age.  My question is, there are A LOT of student credit cards out there for beginners just starting out in the credit world.  Does anyone have recommendations that they have either dealt with personally or know about that are worth having her apply for?  We're looking from prime-type cards, we don't want her to get any predatory type cards.

TIA!

[M_Smart007]

Possibly Discover Student Card(s) ??

https://www.discover.com/credit-cards/student-credit-card/

[CreditAggie]

Discover has an excellent card for students. It is one of the first cards I started with and it continues to be a great card after I graduated. I would also recommend looking into applying for a card with the bank or CU she has deposit accounts with. If she has an iPhone, Apple Card could also be a great place to start.

[HHH71]

I started my son his freshman year in college as an AU on my discover card. He used it for books, gas, food, etc. his sophomore year he had a credit score of 746. We applied for his first card in his name, and went with Capital One Quicksilver card (no AF); he was approved for $1,500. Summer after his sophomore year had him apply for a Chase Freedom Unlimited; he was approved for $2,400. Last month I had him apply for the American Express Everyday Card and he was approved for $6,000. He pays them off before they can report a balance to keep utilization between 0%-5% (might miss statement day), but never carry's a balance, and only uses them if there is money in the bank.

He is now part of these three ecosystems and can decide for himself which one he likes best. We will probably app for a citi card in the spring as well. By he time he graduates he will have a decent credit profile and can do whatever he wants right out of college. I believe it's one of the best gifts I can provide him. An education on money, credit, and help him build it with good habits that should carry him through life.

His credit has remained in the 730-750 range the whole time. I listed annual income for him of $25,000. This is primarily his scholarship and a little work he does for me time to time. 

My thoughts were to get him into the big ecosystems with no annual fee cards, but some earning benefits on spend. 

[OmarGB9]

Discover IT, Chase Freedom Unlimited/Freedom Flex, Capital One Quicksilver. If you have any military affiliation, you can sponsor them for a Navy membership which in turn can lead to a credit card with them. The cash rewards or MoreRewards Amex are good ones.

[CreditAggie]

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@OmarGB9 wrote:

Discover IT, Chase Freedom Unlimited/Freedom Flex, Capital One Quicksilver. If you have any military affiliation, you can sponsor them for a Navy membership which in turn can lead to a credit card with them. The cash rewards or MoreRewards Amex are good ones.

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Unless OP's daughter banks with Chase, I would start with one or two other cards, garden for one year, and then apply for a Chase card. Chase likes to see at least one year of credit history before they are willing to approve a card.

[Anonymalous]

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@OmarGB9 wrote:

Discover IT, Chase Freedom Unlimited/Freedom Flex, Capital One Quicksilver. If you have any military affiliation, you can sponsor them for a Navy membership which in turn can lead to a credit card with them. The cash rewards or MoreRewards Amex are good ones.

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I can speak from very recent experience that someone with no or less than a year's credit history, even with an AU card bumping their scores, won't have a chance at either of those Chase cards. Or any Quicksilver except the Quicksilver One, which should be avoided as a first card because it has an annual fee.

The Discover It student has the best rewards of any student card, and is known to be generous with upgrades. The Navy Fed nRewards has more basic rewards, requires a deposit, and requires military affiliation (which can be a deceased grandfather who was a vet), but the upgrades may be even more generous. The Freedom student is also a solid choice, but more for those who want to start a relationship with Chase. Other good options are a local credit union, or the bank OP's daughter already has an account with.

[disdreamin]

I tried posting a new thread about this a short while ago and since the mod pointed me to this thread for information, I guess I'll ask here whether there are any additional suggestions for a first card - specifically not Disco or AmEx. The Apple suggestion above is out (not iOS user), and no in with Navy. The suggestions to try Chase seem to have been shot down by later posts, so basically I'm hoping for more suggestions.

[simplynoir]

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@disdreamin wrote:

I tried posting a new thread about this a short while ago and since the mod pointed me to this thread for information, I guess I'll ask here whether there are any additional suggestions for a first card - specifically not Disco or AmEx. The Apple suggestion above is out (not iOS user), and no in with Navy. The suggestions to try Chase seem to have been shot down by later posts, so basically I'm hoping for more suggestions.

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May I ask why Discover and AMEX are taken out of consideration? For young/thin files they are good starter cards to begin with

In any case if those are out of contention then other options could be Capital One's Quicksilver cards or secured cards like the ones Bank of America, US Bank and Capital One if you want themt to start their own credit history

[disdreamin]

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@simplynoir wrote:

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@disdreamin wrote:

I tried posting a new thread about this a short while ago and since the mod pointed me to this thread for information, I guess I'll ask here whether there are any additional suggestions for a first card - specifically not Disco or AmEx. The Apple suggestion above is out (not iOS user), and no in with Navy. The suggestions to try Chase seem to have been shot down by later posts, so basically I'm hoping for more suggestions.

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May I ask why Discover and AMEX are taken out of consideration? For young/thin files they are good starter cards to begin with

In any case if those are out of contention then other options could be Capital One's Quicksilver cards or secured cards like the ones Bank of America, US Bank and Capital One if you want themt to start their own credit history

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Both AmEx and Discover have limited utility in that some small businesses don't accept them, and the student is already AU on a BCP for the time being (and I have a bad history with Disco so I'm completely biased against them). Widening the options as far as card choices seems wisest, though, rather than doubling up on AmEx. I mistakenly thought Quicksilver One was an AF card, so I'll definitely look into that card - I have no experience whatsoever with Capital One.